2013 Junior World Figure Skating Championships: Ladies Short Reports

Disclaimer: The GOE values listed next to the elements are the ones, I'd award if I was a judge, to give you a general impression of how well it was executed. I try to describe each of the elements but there's not always time to be as detailed as I would like and those numbers can sometimes say a thousand words. So if you see positive GOE, it means an element was executed to a high standard (and yes, I am generally being very nitpicky ).

Any questions, comments, criticisms and discussion are very welcome.

A general rant: An annoying judging trend that I've noticed is that biellmanns seem to result in very high GOE regardless of how they are actually executed. Which encourages ugly, slow and unextended biellmanns. Thanks, judges!

3toe/3toe(cheated over a quarter, not a lot of flow out) [-1]
3flip – solid but a very short break after steps [0]
flying camel coe to upward twist to donut to upward twist – could use a little more speed [0]
sideways to layback to catch to biellmann – extension a little weak [0]
straight line step sequence [0]
2axel – solid [1]
camel to illusion/change sit cannonball to pancake/up – good rotation speed [1]

A good job on the elements but whilst everything was clean, her elements weren't of an a very high quality (hence I would go with mostly base GOE values).

The choreography was quite generic and her movements lacked conviction. She didn't project strong enough to the judges and the audience.

'This concludes your warm-up, would you please clear the ice NOW' said the announcer after the following warm-up group came to a close. :D

3toe/3toe – not a lot of height, slightly tilted in the air, not a lot of flow out of the second jump which was cheated over a quarter [-2] (a nice spiral coming out of it though)
3lip – underrotated over a quarter, fall [-3]
ina bauer towards layback to sideways to catch to biellmann [1] – quite good rotation speed
circular step sequence – could use more flow [0]
flying camel upward twist to catch coe to donut [1]
steps to 2axel – solid [1]
scratch butterflies to camel to illusion/change sit cannonball to pancake/up – good flow and rotation speed [1]

The program was packed with transitions throughout. Her upper body was very stiff however and there was a jarring contrast between her quite soft arm movements, which reflect the Swan theme quite well, and her head and back which hardly moved at all (whilst the music was Daphnis and Chloe, the concept of this program is her being a swan). Her basic skating isn't very strong either.

3lutz/3toe(weak landing, cheated just over a quarter, turnout, foot down quick) [-2]
3lip – high with secure landing but a slight outside edge on the take-off [0]
transition to camel/sit/up Y/change sit broken leg to forward tuck – quite good rotation speed [1]
2axel [-3] – fall, was a little tentative going in and you could predict this was going to happen
scratch butterfly to flying camel to donut to upward catch(extension a little weak) [0]
circular step sequence [0] – could use more flow, the upper body movement was very over the top and didn't seem to fit the music well
to sideways to layback to catch – could use more extension but very good rotation speed [1]

The program lacked character. Generic GFB choreography with her arms moving up and down, independently of the rest of her body, without much of a purpose and not really fitting the gentle, longato character of the music very well.

This was well skated for her ability. Her basics aren't very strong - posture is a little weak and she didn't have a lot of speed - but she presented the program quite well throughout, making effort on all of her movements.

3lutz/2toe [0] – not a lot of speed or flow out but decent height and secure landings
3lip – solid, short break after steps though and outside edge on take-off [-1]
flying camel to coe to donut to upward catch(good extension) [1]
2axel [-1] – slightly shaky landing, a little over the toe, set-up was quite long
camel to upward twist/up/change sit broken leg to side twist [0]
straight line step sequence – good expression [1]
sideways to layback catch to biellmann(a little slow) [1] - very good rotation speed until the biellmann

She was a little cautious at the start but once she has landed both of the triples, she really relaxed and showed some very good expression and attack. Good posture and lines, she extended her arm movements beautifully. She needs to learn to point her toes, though.

Decent choreography featuring various MITF throughout. She maintained quite good speed and her movements were sharp and confident.

She was in tears in the Kiss & Cry with Berezintsev maintaining his usual high spirits and telling her to smile. He always has a good, positive attitude which is very important in situations like this.

steps towards 3loop/2toe – not a lot of flow out [0]
2flip [1] – straight off steps, good height and a solid landing
flying camel to donut coe to upward catch [0]
back catch spiral towards 1axel [-3]
camel to illusion/change sit cannonball to pancake/up – decent positions and rotation speed [1]
layback to sideways(a little off-centred) to catch to biellmann(barely held one revolution) [-1]
straight line step sequence [0] – could use more speed and attack

A fair amount of connecting elements in the program. The choreography could have been quite effective if she sold it well (the music had a strong rhythm and a lot of accents) but her movements lacked attack and confidence.

3lutz(cheated over a quarter)/3toe(very strong) [0]
2lip [-3] – opened up after a little over two revolutions and fell
back spiral to 2axel [0]
layback to catch to hyper-extended biellmann – fantastic positions, very good rotation speed [2]
camel/up Y/change up butt out/sit forward tuck – good positions and rotation speed [1]
straight line step sequence – sharp footwork, a lot of upper body movement [1]
to scratch butterfly to flying camel upward catch coe to donut – good positions [1]

Strong basics. Beautiful posture and lines, great flexibility. Smooth edges. She reflected the music quite well, both in the slower and the upbeat part.

There's star quality here and I pray she will be given good programs in the seasons to come because bad music choices and generic choreography managed to very successfully drained life from Lipnitskaia, who was also a great performer before she entered the international scene.

3lip [-3] – gap after steps, take-off off an outside edge, turnout on the landing
3lutz/2toe [0] – clean but a long set-up and not a lot of speed out
layback to sideways to catch to biellmann [1] – extension quite weak, good rotation speed though
scratch butterfly to flying camel to coe to donut to upward catch [0] – rotation speed and positions not bad but it took her quite a while to change some of the positions
2axel [-1] – tentative, deliberate set-up, landing a little scratchy
circular step sequence [0]
camel/sit cannonball/change sit broken leg/up var to up – quite good flow and rotation speed [1]

Decent speed but her upper body was quite stiff and she didn't interpret the music very well.

Decent basic skating but she didn't present the program very well. She needs to look up to the judges and the audience and show more attack and conviction in her movements.

She's extremely, uniquely flexible and there are a lot of kicks, spirals and splits in her program but what is their purpose? They aren't done to highlights in the music, they don't really reflect its character either and they don't really fit within the program as a whole. It's showing off for the sake of it.

It makes me sad because I remember her Kung Fu Panda program from back when she was 12. It was fun, playful and there was a joy and an exuberance to her skating. But in the last two seasons it looked like her team tried to make her look 'mature' by giving her dreary, overused sad music which she doesn't seem to feel at all and her choroegraphy couldn't be any more generic. She has incredible talent but I don't think that she is being packaged well.

She had a look of utter horror upon seeing the scores. She looked possessed by the devil.

3lutz/3toe(cheated over 1/2) [-2]
layback to sideways to catch to biellmann [1] – decent positions (although could use some more flexibility in her back) and rotation speed
flying camel(poor free leg extension, it was slightly bent in the knee) to coe to donut to upward catch [1] – good rotation speed
3flip [-1]  overrotated but good height and a good entry right off preceding footwork, with no obvious preparation
to footwork to 2axel [1]
straight line step sequence – quite fast footwork, good energy [1]
camel to catch/sit var/change sit var to pancake/up – good rotation speed [1]

Heavy, lumbering, movement. Her arms weren't extended and she didn't point her toes. Is she doing ballet classes? Because she really should.

Having said that, she has shown quite good energy throughout and her perky movement reflected the upbeat, playful character of the music quite well.

It was impressive how well the flip and the axel were integrated into the program with connecting footwork.

A polished, confident performance, where everything looked neat and secure, despite the mistake on the flip. She knows how to use her arms but her back is stiff. Her basics are not as strong as those of the top skaters but she did give it her best this afternoon.

3flutz/3toe [-2] – poor height and both jumps were cheated over a quarter, but the landings were soft and solid
3flip [0] – again: lacking height and cheated over a quarter but soft and secure landing
flying camel upward twist to donut to upward catch [0] – could use a little more speed
straight line step sequence – quite good flow [1]
2axel [0]
camel/jump to sit side twist/change sit var/up Y [1] – rotated in both directions! decent positions and rotation speed
layback to sideways to catch to biellmann [1] – decent positions and rotation speed

Soft kneebend, gentle and elegant upper body movement which reflected the languid character of the music very well. She definitely moved like a swan. The whole package was there and everything was executed to a high standard.

3toe/3toe(underroatted over 1/2, step out) [-3]
3lip [-3] – outside edge on take-off, cheated over a quarter, heavy step-out
camel/up Y/change sit cannonball/up var [0]
2axel – solid, nice extension on the landing [1]
scratch butterflies to flying camel coe to upward catch to donut [0] – decent positions but could use more speed
straight line step sequence [0] – very busy upper body movement but could use more speed and flow
layback to sideways to catch to biellmann [1] – very good extension, could use a little more speed though

Poor posture and lines, quite stiff back, generic choreography. The were a lot of arm movements throughout but they weren't extended well.

The Spanish arrangement of the Moonlight Sonata that she used for the second half of the program was probably the most ridiculous thing I have ever heard.

3flip [1] - solid, good flow out, a very short break after steps though
2axel [1] – secure landing with a nice extension of the free leg, set-up quite short
layback to sideways to layback catch to biellmann [1] – quite good positions and flow throughout, lovely arms on the layback at the start
flying camel coe to upward twist to upward catch [0] – extensions a little weak
3loop(cheated over a quarter)/2toe [-1]
straight line step sequence [2] - great expression, skated to the music well, quite good flow
camel to illusion/sit broken leg/change sit cannonball/up Y [0]

Sophisticated, mature presentation. She used her whole body to interpret the music throughout, even the facial expressions were appropriate and added to the effect. The upper body movement was quite busy and it was all in character of the music. The program flowed over the ice well too. She had the whole package and deserved the highest PCS so far.

Samantha, honey, I love you but that new hair colour is way too dark and doesn't suit your complexion.

Nice posture and lines. She was elegant and skated to the music quite well.

As she was about to start her program, the music failed and she had to leave the ice while it was being sorted. It took so long that Park and Kim needed another warm-up. After the ice fail of the previous day, this is another example for why major events of any kind should not be held in Italy where nothing ever works.

3flutz(cheated over a quarter)/2toe [-2] – not a lot of flow out
steps to flying camel to upward catch coe to donut [1] – quite good positions and rotation speed
sideways to layback to catch to biellmann [1]
3flip [-2] – solid but a long break after steps
2axel [0]
straight line step sequence [1] – good use of upper body, decent speed and flow
camel to upward twist/up var/change sit broken leg to forward tuck [0]

A well chorographed program, featuring a lot of upper body movement and a fair amount of transitions as well. Good use of her whole body throughout. Nice use of arms.